Assistance
by thelittleturtleduck
Summary: She had called out for one Avatar, but was greeted by another.


A/n: I have so many other things I should be writing right now, but I couldn't pass up this oppurtunity. This is based off of a headcanon presented by giannine18 on tumblr. I loved the idea and had to write about it. So please read and review! God bless!

Disclaimer: I don't own "The Legend of Korra."

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It was all so strange.

Colors were so much brighter here, their vibrance nearly blinding one upon first glance. The creatures were different as well, their genetic makeup shaping them in ways Jinora had never imagined possible. The Spirit World was definitely something spectacular to see.

The young airbender had wandered into a dark forest, the branches creaking above her as unknown spirits ran across their surface. She had been desperately seeking someone familiar after going off on her own for awhile, but so far, she was having no luck.

A chill ran over her body as she saw a strange shape scurry into a bush in front of her, its deformed paws leaving foot prints in the snow covered ground. Jinora wrapped her arms around herself as she felt a drastic change of temperature seize the air. It was so strange for her to not have control over her birth element in this place, it made her feel vulnerable.

"Korra!" Jinora called out into the darkness in front of her. The girl shoved another branch aside, the sound of her boots crunching in the snow her only reply. She had travelled here with the young avatar, now where could she have gone?

The airbender continued deeper into the forest, the darkness engulfing her form. Small twinkling orbs swirled around her form, their light allowing a small amount of visibility so the young girl could continue on.

"Korra!" She cried again, her heart pounding in her chest. No book had ever prepared her for being alone in the Spirit World. She felt as though everywhere she went,  
eyes were following her. Turning to the side, she glanced at a creature lurking behind a tree trunk, watching her every move as she hastily continued on.

"Korra!"

She could hear her voice becoming hoarse, the desperation made more evident with every crack. Pausing, the young girl allowed herself to simply listen for a reply.

There was none.

Sighing deeply, the child sunk to her knees. The wetness of the snow began to seep through the thin fabric of her yellow robes, but Jinora hardly cared.

She was lost in the Spirit World.

"You know better than to go off on your own in an unfamiliar place," She promptly reprimanded herself, brushing a few stray strands of dark hair away from her forehead, "Now look what you have done."

The forest was unnervingly quiet, causing the young girl to shake. She had never thought of herself as fearful, but without her bending, she felt exposed. She knew the animals were watching her, causing another shiver of fear to go up her spine.

The thought of continuing on crossed her mind, but there was no use. It seemed that the further she traveled into the forest, the less likely it was that someone would find her. Hopefully that someone would find her before something else did.

So she sat and waited. Jinora had always been a patient child, but in that moment, she felt as though she was going to burst with frustration. She crossed her legs, hoping that meditation may get her mind back on track. Her foot tapped against the snow, her fingers scratched at her pale skin, and her nose twitched near constantly. There was definitely no way she was going to meditate in this enviroment.

"Ok," She sighed to herself, standing up and brushing off her robes, "Obviously waiting here isn't going to do anything."

She was about to turn around and retrace her steps back to the beginning of the forest when something caused her to freeze.

In a small clearing of the forest in front of her, standing with his back presented to the young airbender, was a man with a red cloak covering his shoulders and a blue tattoo crawling up his neck and sliding over his head.

"Dad!" The young girl cried out, her heart nearly bursting with relief. Running as quickly as she could to the man, Jinora dodged a few roots sticking up from the ground, gracefully jumping over them as she reached the break in the forest.

She had known her father, along with his siblings, had been transported into the Spirit World, she just hadn't expected that he would be the one to find her.

"Oh, Dad it's so good to see you!" Her exclamation was full of both joy and relief, her body visibly relaxing as she reached out to touch his shoulder. But then she froze.

The man standing in front of her was not her father.

The stranger turned around to face the young airbender, his tattoos marking that he was one too. There were similarities between his face and that of her father's, but there were so many differences as well. His beard was lighter than her dad's, the length of it shorter than the one the master airbender usually sported. His eyes were gray, just like those of her younger brother's and though his form towered over her, she didn't see him as being intimidating. There was a gentle smile on his face, one that was reminiscent of the one her aunt and uncle usually sported.

No, this man was not her father. He was her grandfather. He was Avatar Aang.

They stood in silence for a moment, both taking the other one in. Never had they met face to face before, but Jinora felt as though she had known this man her entire life.

"I know I'm not the Avatar you called for, but I figured I may be able to give you some assistance," Aang broke the silence, a lopsided grin appearing on his features as he spoke to his stunned granddaughter.

It took Jinora a moment to register that he was speaking to her, his voice as soothing as a lullaby just as her Gran Gran had told her it was. Not knowing exactly how to react to this turn of events, Jinora regained her composure.

"Avatar Aang," She began, her voice cracking slightly as she spoke the name of the man she had never imagined having the honor of meeting, "Thank you for coming to my aid, I am Jinora." The girl bowed low, unsure of how she was supposed to greet the deceased Avatar. She figured formality was probably her best bet.

Aang's grin grew, his head shaking at the young child's behavior. Jinora was so much like Tenzin had been, so serious and polite.

The small airbender kept her head bowed, anxiously awaiting a response from the man. She was surprised when she felt a gentle hand grip her shoulder. Gazing up with dark eyes, she was met with a stormy gaze that was so full of love that it nearly caused her to cry.

"Now is that anyway to greet your grandfather?"

With those words, Jinora finally allowed herself to fall victim to her emotions. Sinking into her grandfather's embrace, the airbender buried her face within the fabric of his robes. His arms held on to her tightly, his cheek resting a top of her head as he felt her begin to shake with tears.

"Don't cry," He murmured, bringing a tattooed hand up to stroke her hair in comfort, much like he had with Katara and Kya when they were upset, "This is a happy meeting."

"I am happy," Jinora insisted, her voice muffled by his robes.

The past Avatar chuckled, "Then there is no reason to cry."

The young girl pulled away from him momentarily, a hand coming up to scrub at her eyes as a grin made its way on to her features, "Grandfather, it's so good to see you!"

The man returned her smile, "That's the greeting I was looking for!"

Jinora laughed lightly, her head spinning so wildly that she had to maintain a grip on the Avatar's arms, "I wasn't expecting to find you here."

"I could say the same for you."

She nodded, "I know. Korra and I were separated earlier, and I tried to find her. I ended up in this forest though."

"Why did you enter the Spirit World in the first place?"

"We were going to look for Aunt Kya, Uncle Bumi, and my father."

Aang's brows furrowed at this piece of information, his gray eyes growing even more curious, "Their here as well?"

Now, Jinora was the one who was confused.

"Shouldn't you have already known that?"

The previous Avatar shrugged, "Korra hasn't communicated with me in awhile. All I know is that the bridge between the Spirit World and the real world is becoming near nonexistent."

The airbender nodded, "That's pretty much all Korra knows, too."

Aang sighed, "Well, this is becoming quite the mess."

Jinora agreed, but the smile would not leave her face. Throwing her arms around her grandfather's waist, the young girl hugged him again.

"It really is nice to see you grandfather. I've read so much about you in Gran Gran's journals that I feel like I've known you all along."

Smiling, Aang wrapped his arms around her in return. Hugging his granddaughter once more, knowing that this was a rare opportunity he was getting.

They stood in their embrace for awhile, before separating.

"So," Aang remarked, wrapping an arm around Jinora's shoulders as they walked further into the forest, "I believe I was supposed to give you some assistance."

"Will you take me to my family?" Jinora asked him before correcting herself, "I mean, our family."

Aang chuckled at her revision, blowing on his bison whistle to signal for Appa.

"It would be my pleasure."


End file.
